Archive for the ‘Mergers’ Category

Chrysler is working around the clock to kiss the government’s butt.

Chrysler is working around the clock to complete an alliance with Italy’s Fiat SpA (FIA.MI) that would also result in a new board for the U.S. automaker, Vice Chairman Jim Press said on Wednesday.

Chrysler, about 80 percent controlled by Cerberus Capital Management (CBS.UL), was given until the end of April by the U.S. autos task force to complete an alliance with Fiat that would give it access to small car technology it now lacks.

Absolutely amazing. Do they really think having “small car technology” will save Chrysler?

Apparently Sun thinks it’s worth more than IBM was offering. I’m not sure how much that is, but what now?

After weeks of negotiations, I.B.M. withdrew its $7 billion bid for Sun Microsystems on Sunday, one day after Sun’s board balked at a reduced offer, according to three people close to the talks.

The deal’s collapse raises questions about Sun’s next step, since the I.B.M. offer was far above the value of the Silicon Valley company’s shares when news of the I.B.M. offer first surfaced last month. Sun, an innovative pioneer in computer workstations and Internet-era software, has struggled in the marketplace in recent years.

Take it with a grain of salt. Not worth a grain of salt. It seems salt is worth something.

K+S AG, Europe’s biggest salt maker, agreed to buy Morton Salt from Dow Chemical Co. for $1.675 billion to become the world’s largest producer.

Morton Salt, the largest maker in North America, had sales last year of $1.2 billion and $270 million of earnings before tax and other items, Kassel, Germany-based K+S said today in a statement on its Web site. The all-cash transaction is expected to close midyear, said Bob Plishka, a spokesman for Midland, Michigan-based Dow.

If Morton’s is now europe owned, is there any American owned salt left in America?

Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer said Thursday that the US software giant remains interested in a search business partnership with Yahoo! and welcomed the appointment of new CEO Carol Bartz.

“I’ve been quite public about the fact that there are advantages for advertisers and consumers, for Microsoft and for Yahoo! through a search partnership, and we’d like to do one,” Ballmer said.

Does this mean we have to go through a whole new he said/he said cycle with the on again off again love affair between Microsoft and Yahoo? God I hope not.

Wow. GM sure was quick to jump up and say something, weren’t they?

General Motors Corp has not reopened merger talks with Chrysler LLC, a GM spokesman said on Thursday, denying a report in The Wall Street Journal that talks had been revived.

“We have had no talks with them since we announced during our third-quarter earnings call that the talks had been suspended,” GM spokesman Tony Cervone said.

If I remember correctly, Yahoo did the same thing when Microsoft came calling.

Wow. Instead of two big bailouts, we may be able to pool our money into one giant bailout FAIL.

General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC have reopened merger talks, as Chrysler owner Cerberus Capital Management LP has signaled its willingness to give away part of its ownership in the auto maker, say people familiar with the discussions.

With cash running low at both companies, Cerberus took the initiative to restart discussions that sputtered just weeks ago. At that time, both GM and Chrysler viewed a business combination as impractical and as a distraction from their mounting liquidity problems.

These companies say they need our money to make it to 2009, yet they are talking about merging? Exactly where do they get money for that? Are we going into the merger business too?

Do these people think they are actually going to see any money from “Countrywide” ever again?

Countrywide Financial Corp., the home lender acquired by Bank of America Corp., was sued by Greenwich Financial Services Fund over claims an agreement to reduce payments on mortgages by $8.4 billion would hurt investors.

The hedge fund claims investors will be harmed by Bank of America’s settlement, reached on behalf of Countrywide, with 15 state attorneys general. The value of trusts that bought 400,000 mortgages will decline under the deal, the fund said.

In the proposed class action, or group lawsuit, the Greenwich, Connecticut-based fund demands a declaration that “Countrywide must purchase at par every mortgage loan that it sold to any of the 374 securitization trusts,” David Grais, a lawyer for the fund said today in an e-mailed statement. Grais said Countrywide could owe $80 billion to the trusts.

They ‘want’ Countrywide to purchase every mortgage loan that might affect any of the 374 securitization trusts. Good luck with that. Even if Greenwich Financial Services Fund is successful in their suit, it’s you and I that will be paying that $80 billion. The government will just add that to the bailout totals, I am sure.

We are so screwed.

Finally. I thought yesterday would never come.

The U.S. Justice Department on Monday approved the proposed $4.22 billion purchase of XM Satellite Radio (XMSR.O) by Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI.O) after concluding a combined XM-Sirius would not harm consumers.

The deal still needs approval from the Federal Communications Commission, which is expected to follow the Justice Department’s lead.

The deal, announced in February 2007, would combine the only two providers of satellite radio in the United States.

Does this mean I will rush out and sign up for satellite radio again? Nope. Nothing they do will make me want satellite radio again. Sure, it’s nice to have sometimes, but it’s not something I will be willing to pay for again any time soon.

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